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EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Four-time Olympic medalist Penny Oleksiak won't compete in next month's Pan Pacific swimming championships so she can take a break before returning to training in September.
Oleksiak qualified for the team by winning the 100-meter freestyle and 100 butterfly at the Canadian trials in Edmonton. The 18-year-old swimmer from Toronto decided in conjunction with Swimming Canada to skip the meet that includes Australia, Canada, Japan and the U.S. The meet is Aug. 9-13 in Tokyo.
Swimming Canada high performance director John Atkinson said Sunday that Oleksiak will return to training in September to begin the final two years of preparation for the 2020 Olympics.
Oleksiak burst onto the international scene at the 2016 Rio de Janiero Olympics, winning four medals, including gold in the 100 free.
She joins Olympic medalist Katerine Savard in taking a break from the Canadian national team this summer.
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